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University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
10-7,1-4MAC
Ball State
4-12,0-4MAC
Massachusetts Men's Basketball Defeats Ball State, 79-71
January 10, 2026 | Men's Basketball
AMHERST, Mass. -- The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team defeated Ball State, 79-71, at the Mullins Center on Saturday afternoon (4,010).
Graduate student Leonardo Bettiol went 7-for-9 from the field and 6-of-7 from the charity stripe to put up a team-leading 20 points. Bettiol added eight rebounds, three assists and a steal on the day. It marked the first Mid-American Conference win for the Minutemen (10-7,1-4 MAC), while Ball State moved to 0-4 in league play (4-12 overall).
Marcus Banks Jr. posted 17 points, including 16 in the second half, and K'Jei Parker followed with 14. Daniel Hankins-Sanford recorded his sixth double-double of the year, scoring 10 points and coming down with a game-high 10 boards. Danny Carbuccia led in assists with six.
For Ball State, Davion Hill led the way with 22 points, shooting 9-for-13 from the field and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc, while tallying seven rebounds. Armoni Zeigler and Preston Copeland each had 12 points on the afternoon for the Cardinals, with Zeigler dishing out six dimes.
How It Happened
- Danny Carbuccia, Leonardo Bettiol, Marcus Banks Jr., Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Jayden Ndjigue started for the Minutemen.
- Bettiol scored the first four points for UMass, before pushing it to a 9-5 UMass lead at 13:55.
- Parker hit a tear drop floater from the lane to cut the deficit to one, 16-15, with 6:36 remaining in the first half.
- A pair of Bettiol free throws regained the lead for the Minutemen, 17-16, with under six minutes to play in the first half.
- Parker responded to a Ball State three with a triple of his own from the top of the key, putting Massachusetts up one, 22-21, with 3:54 left in the half.
- Carbuccia found Bettiol on the block, who tossed in a right-handed baby hook shot for a 26-25 lead with 94 seconds in the first.
- Ndjigue faked two defenders and finished at the rim to put UMass ahead, 28-25, for a lead it would hold onto until the half.
- Banks Jr., buried a triple from the left wing to open the second half scoring, putting Massachusetts ahead 31-25.
- After two quick Ball State baskets, Bettiol responded by finishing at the rim through contact, converting an and-one to push the Minutemen lead back to five at 34-29, with 16:54 on the clock.
- The Cardinals worked a pair of free throws and knocked down a corner three to knot the game at 34 with 15:32 remaining.
- Isaiah Placide responded to back-to-back Ball State layups with a triple from the left wing, regaining the lead for the Minutemen, 39-38, with 13:29 left.
- Hankins-Sanford collected an offensive miss and flipped it out to Banks Jr., for his second triple of the night, giving UMass a 43-38 lead.
- Luka Damjanac extended the UMass run to eight with a strong finish inside at 12:10 of the second half.
- Banks Jr., scooped an underhand pass to a waiting Bettiol under the basket for an easy two, keeping UMass ahead by seven, 47-40, at 10:27.
- Placide knocked down his second triple of the half to pull the Minutemen ahead, 50-40, with less than 10 minutes to play.
- Parker scored five straight points for UMass, one from the left wing and a jumper from the free throw line to put Massachusetts ahead 55-45 with 8:38 to play.
- Bettiol connected from the right block at 4:32 to keep UMass ahead, 63-55.
- Banks Jr., nailed consecutive triples to put the Minutemen ahead by 11 at 69-58, with 3:07 remaining in the contest.
- Banks Jr., hit nothing but net from the right corner to keep Massachusetts ahead by double figures at 74-64 at 1:24.
- The Minutemen then secured a 79-71 victory.
Numbers To Know
- 36: The Minutemen out rebounded the Cardinals, 36-28.
- 19: UMass dished out 19 assists.
- 16: The game featured 16 lead changes and four ties.
- 6: Daniel Hankins-Sanford recorded his sixth double-double of the season (10 points, 10 rebounds).
- 4: Four Minutemen reached doubles figures: Leonardo Bettiol (20), Marcus Banks Jr. (17), K'Jei Parker (14) and Daniel Hankins-Sanford (10).
Up Next
- The Minutemen continue conference play on the road at Western Michigan on Tuesday, Jan. 13, with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.
- The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live updates and links available at umassathletics.com or @UMassMBB on X (Twitter).
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